


Marinette, Twice Exposed

by EikaTsukiyomi



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Marichat, Reveal, Romance, adrienette - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-10
Updated: 2017-05-10
Packaged: 2018-10-30 05:07:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10869723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EikaTsukiyomi/pseuds/EikaTsukiyomi
Summary: Chat Noir hadn't meant to see Ladybug detransform, but now he knows his Lady's true identity, and he figures the right thing to do is to visit Marinette and tell her everything, including his own true identity if she wants to know. What he didn't count on was discovering Marinette has ANOTHER secret!





	1. Cars, Pigeons, and A Chocolate Shop

**Author's Note:**

> This was written in response to the prompt “This Is Damaging to My Self Esteem. I Hope You Know”, submitted to me by howlwiththerain on Tumblr. I fully intended to just write a one-shot drabble, but I couldn't help but write an entire fic because I enjoyed writing it so much! XD

There was nothing unusual about yesterday's fight against Hawk Moth’s latest supervillain...certainly nothing to suggest that Chat Noir and Ladybug’s partnership would be irrevocably changed that day.  

No matter how often he imagined how wonderful it would be if just one or two select things were different between them (the first being mutual feelings of love and the second being the sharing of each other's true identities), Chat Noir had been nothing but the best partner for Ladybug he could be.  Whatever she needed him to be or do at any given moment, he was there in a heartbeat to provide, be it another opinion, a distraction, the destroyer of an obstacle in her way, or to take a hit she couldn't afford to take... and all the while, since the day she unknowingly stole his heart away, he was content to wait forever for her to fall for him in return. 

As much as he wanted to know who his lady was underneath that red and black-spotted mask, and to tell her who he was and how hopelessly in love he was, he understood that protecting their secrets was part of protecting each other, and the rest of the city of Paris.  But when the time was right...when there was no more reason to hide from Hawk Moth, maybe...he would know.  Because she loved and trusted him...

Not because he just happened to see her detransform behind the same parked car  _ he _ had been about to hide behind.

To be clear, he had  _ not _ been following her (he insisted as his Kwami, Plagg scolded and jeered at him while snacking on his third piece of Camembert that day at the same time)!  They had left the scene and gone their separate ways in almost opposite directions as they always did.  He had barely cleared the first rooftop when he realized he was heading straight towards the TV1 helicopter on its way back to the broadcasting station.  If they had seen him going anywhere in a hurry, they might have tried to follow him in the hope of capturing more footage, so he had abruptly turned around and started looking for the nearest safe hiding place in the opposite direction, completely forgetting that Ladybug had gone the same way.

He had dropped down in front of a chocolate shop, scattering a trio of pigeons on the sidewalk, and ducked down in between two cars parallel-parked by the sidewalk.  His Miraculous beeped one final time before his transformation dissolved and dropped a tired and grouchy Kwami into his hands.  Adrien was rifling through an inside pocket of his jacket for a piece of Camembert when he heard the whiz of Ladybug’s yo-yo and the soft thump of her feet touching down (scattering the pigeons again, from the sound of flapping and affronted coo-ing) right on the other side of the car he had his feet jammed up against.  He had frozen, alarm bells going off in his head, and stuffed Plagg in his jacket just has he heard the sound of what could only have been Ladybug detransforming less than two yards in front of him.  He held his breath, and then heard the sounds of her voice and soft footfalls coming down the sidewalk.

“Maybe this shop sells cookies?”

“Maybe,” said a tiny, tired-sounding voice.  “But it’s a chocolatier, not a bakery…”

“If they don't have anything for you, Tikki, you might have to wait until we get home.  Is that okay?”

“I’ll be fine!  Your parents’ chocolate chip cookies are worth waiting for!” replayed the tiny voice, sounding cheerful and reassuring in spite of its owner’s exhaustion.

Adrien could feel his heart pounding in his ears.

_ Please don't see me, please don't see me, just go on in and I’ll be on my merry way back to my own home...still not knowing who the love of my life is… _

His heart actually throbbed painfully with longing at the thought.  Adrien shook his head and ran both hands through his hair absentmindedly, now hoping he wasn’t about to lose his mind over the internal conflict raging between the responsible and the romantic sides of his brain.

For better or worse, the decision was made for him two seconds later.

By the time he recognized the sudden but familiar sensation of a tickle in a runny nose, reflex had taken over and he let out a sneeze loud enough to send the pigeons flying into the air for the third time.  With no cars driving by in that moment, there was no way Ladybug hadn’t heard it less than three meters away.

“What was that?!” Ladybug’s voice demanded in a panicked squeak, just loud enough for Adrien to catch.  “Where did that come from?!”

A car came around the corner of the block and Adrien used the noise as cover to fling himself face-up on the ground, grab the underside of the bumper of the car behind his head, plant his feet, and, ignoring the gritty scrape of the pavement, shuffle himself backward under the car behind him.  He covered his nose and mouth with one hand to muffle the sound of his breathing and prayed to Mr. Pigeon that he wouldn’t inhale any more pigeon dandruff.  Eyes bugging out in panic, he eyed the sidewalk visible to his right and waited, straining his ears for any sound of footsteps.

With the sound of the passing car fading away at the end of the end of the block, Adrien was able to catch Ladybug’s voice murmuring, “I don’t see anybody...well, there’s a lady with a little girl in a stroller across the street, but that sneeze sounded male…maybe it came from around the corner?”

“I don’t see anybody looking at you funny or acting strange, do you?” asked the tiny voice.

“No…”

“Then it’s probably nothing we need to worry about…” the tiny voice mused, still sounding slightly concerned but clearly trying not to be paranoid and worry Ladybug.  “Nothing inherently dangerous about someone sneezing…”

“I guess, but…”  Ladybug’s voice, though still tinged with trepidation, sounded somewhat distant now...almost contemplative, like there was something else on her mind.  There was a moment of silence, broken only the sound of another car driving by, and then Adrien heard the soft scuff of hesitant footstep...in his direction.

_ What is she doing?! Why?! Oh, crap, I’m so screwed...if I so much as move my head, she’ll hear me unless another car drives by!  What do I doooooo!? _

He saw a pair of girl’s feet in pink ballet flats walking slowly and hesitantly towards him, and then stand on tip-toe with her weight on mostly one foot.  He guessed she was trying to see over the front of the car he was under, perhaps to see if there was someone else across the street that the parked car had blocked her view of.  As long as she didn’t think to crouch down and look  _ under _ the car, maybe he could still get out of this…

Wait...did he recognize those shoes from somewhere…?  There was something undoubtedly familiar about them, though he couldn’t put his finger on why.  He could tell they weren’t nearly expensive enough to be Chloe’s shoes ( _ Well, of course they aren’t Chloe’s shoes, there’s no way she could be Ladybug...I mean, I’d recognize her voice if she was! _ Adrien admonished himself).  Maybe it was someone in his class?  But then wouldn’t he have noticed her before?  

“I must have imagined it…” Ladybug’s voice muttered, jerking his attention back to the present.  She seemed to relax, coming down from tip-toe, and tracing the sidewalk back and forth in front of her.  Somehow it struck him as a very wavering, uncertain gesture, very unlike Ladybug’s usually confident and determined body language...except, he remembered she hadn’t felt fully confident and determined from the beginning: she had started out at least as awkward and fumbling as he had the first time he became a superhero with superpowers, and she had her moments from time to time when she felt unsure, even scared.  He couldn’t recall any specific instance when he had seen Ladybug make this gesture, but somehow it still didn’t clash with his image of her...even Adrien wasn’t sure why.

_ Somehow I never got around to wondering what kind of shoes Ladybug might wear day-to-day… _ Adrien mused, beginning to relax a little bit now that it seemed she wasn’t going to check under the cars for him.   _ I don’t know what I would have expected, but those  _ are _ cute shoes...aww, I wonder if she likes the color pink...does she actually have a girly-girl style in everyday life?!  That’s...so cute!  I wonder if she’s more of a skirt or pants kind of girl…?  She’d probably look gorgeous in anything, honestly...or adorable!  Or both! _

Adrien’s impromptu daydreaming jolted to a halt as the girl in pink flats who was Ladybug stepped back and started walking back the way she came, back toward the chocolate shop.  He waited to hear the clunk of a push-bar or the tinkle of a doorbell to indicate she had gone inside, when he heard the muffled sound of what sounded like a cell phone ringing.  He didn’t have his with him, so it must have been hers.

“Oh, crap!” Ladybug hissed.  “That’s probably Alya.  I gotta--Ack!”

Her phone--a plain white one with no case or charms--clattered to the sidewalk, and Adrien couldn’t help but wince ( _ I’d bet my own phone that it’s broken now...hope she can get a new one…) _ .  Adrien saw Ladybug kneel to pick it up, and he realized a split second too late that keeping his eyes on her feet had been a bad idea.

He could only see her legs from the knee down as she knelt down, but it was enough for him to see that she was wearing capris in bright pink stretch denim with turn-ups lined with white fabric patterned with pink dots.  An arm came into view, picking up the phone; there was no sleeve of any kind visible from his position, but it wasn’t necessary.  Adrien would recognize those pant legs anywhere.  His eyes widened and a soft gasp of shock escaped him (thankfully not giving away his position).  

_ Marinette… _

She stood up again, grumbling something about a protective case, but Adrien’s brain, which was currently functioning at about 40% its normal capacity, was refusing to process any sensory input.  

_ Marinette…!?  Marinette is...Ladybug…!? _

Instead, his head was swimming with memories of moments spent with Ladybug, and with Marinette.  It wasn’t helping him process this revelation any better, just filling him with an absolute maelstrom of emotions that he didn’t have the presence of mind to separate and identify.

_ Ladybug’s been sitting behind me in class this whole time?!   _ I’ve _ been sitting in front of  _ Ladybug _ this whole time?!  LADYBUG IS IN MY CLASS?!?! _

A familiar, sulking voice piped up, sounding like it was coming from far away.

“Listen, kid…I get it.  You’ve just had a big shock...”  

While Adrien’s brain was slowly restoring its lost connections to his senses, Plagg’s voice basically failed to reach Adrien’s network before his request timed out.

_ I modeled a bowler hat that LADYBUG MADE!! _

“But you’ve got plenty of time to freak out about it when you get home.  Right now, I have pressing needs that are more important!”

_ Oh my god, I’ve played Ultimate Mecha Strike III with Ladybug!!  IN HER ROOM!!  AND SHE GAVE ME HER LUCKY CHARM!!! _

“Hey!  I’m hungry!  Gimme my Camembert!”

Adrien finally snapped out of his trance and awkwardly fished out the piece of cheese he had meant to give Plagg earlier.  Gently pushing Plagg back inside his jacket, Adrien started working his way out from under the car.  He realized as he finally stood up that his white jacket was stained dark grey on the elbows (and without a doubt all over the back and the seat of his jeans) from scuffing against the road.  He hoped he wouldn’t have to dodge any awkward questions from Nathalie or his father about it.

He turned toward the chocolate shop, where Marinette...Ladybug...had gone to find food for her kwami.  He stared at the window display, which prevented him from seeing inside, and just stood there, his mind entirely blank once again, except for visions of Ladybug...and Marinette.

“You gonna stand there until she comes back out?” Plagg asked pointedly from inside his jacket.

“Oh, shoot!”  Adrien jumped, remembering that that he was supposed to be at home until 2PM, when he was scheduled for a short photoshoot at the Trocadéro.  He had left his phone behind, so he would just have to hope he could still make it back in time.  “I gotta get back!”

“Yup,” Plagg grunted, unconcerned as always with Adrien’s responsibilities.  “I assume you’ll be transforming again, so just don’t forget to feed me again when you get back.”

Yeah, I know!  Don’t worry!”  Adrien assured Plagg hurriedly.  He turned and vaulted over the front of the parked car to crouch down right where he had hidden before. “Plagg, transform me!”

The trip back took him only ten minutes, but he was lucky not to have smacked into the side of a building in his distraction; his mind was filled with racing thoughts of both his partner and his classmate, who he now knew were one and the same person.

Adrien managed to get back and into his bedroom with a few minutes to spare.  He used this time to change clothes and make sure there was no incriminating dirt in his hair or on his face.   He got another piece of cheese for Plagg, but was called downstairs by Nathalie before he could eat lunch.  If his stomach growled during the shoot, it wouldn’t mess up the shots, at least, he thought.  But then, Adrien also knew that Plagg would have been just fine going without his cheese until after they got back from the photoshoot.

Adrien couldn’t remember a time when he was more distracted during a photoshoot.  His brain kept replaying the mind-blowing revelation from in front of the chocolate shop over and over and over, broken up by random flashbacks of moments fighting by Ladybug’s side, and moments spent in Marinette’s company, mostly at school.  He was trying to merge his internalized images of Ladybug and Marinette together, but he knew each of them from completely separately facets of his day-to-day life, each of which  _ he  _ lived as very different versions of  _ himself _ !  Even in hindsight, he couldn’t think of anything that linked the two girls.  Sure, it was now clear as day that, in fact, they  _ were _ the same person, and it actually explained a lot the longer he thought about it, but they still just seemed so different...it wasn’t that he couldn’t see Marinette as a superheroine, or that he couldn’t see Ladybug as a high school student with many creative talents; his brain just had too much trouble...fusing them?  He couldn’t even find the words to explain his thoughts to himself.

Maybe it was because his stream of thoughts were interrupted by the photographer so often; he would space out and stay in one pose for too long, requiring the photographer to recapture his attention.  Once in awhile, he didn’t hear what the photographer was telling him for how to alter his pose, and would have to ask him to repeat his instructions.  The photographer couldn’t exactly lecture Adrien for his lack of professionalism with Nathalie and his bodyguard standing right there, but it wasn’t hard to tell that he was annoyed and frustrated.  Adrien was truly sorry for making the photographer’s job harder--if Nathalie told his father about it, his disapproval would come back to bite both of them--but he couldn’t help it:  he had just learned his soulmate’s true identity!  His whole world had been flipped over!

He remained spacy, scatter-brained, and high-strung through the entire rest of the photoshoot and the entirety of the car ride home.  He almost completely bypassed his last chance to grab his lunch before the chef started preparing dinner.  As soon as he was alone in the dining room, he tossed aside his table manners and wolfed his food down in less than five minutes.  As soon as he made it back to his room and closed the door behind him, he let Plagg out from inside his jacket and started unloading everything on his kwami.

“Okay, Plagg!  What-am-I-gonna-do?  What-am-I-gonna-do-about-Ladybug?!  What-am-I-gonna-do-about-Marinette?!  Do-I-tell-them?!  I-mean-her?!  I-dunno-but-should-I-tell-them-I-know?!  I-mean-HER!  DO-I-TELL-HER-I’M-CHAT-NOIR?!  TELL ME WHAT TO DO, PLAGG!!”

“Okay, okay!  Slow down!  Stop talking!” Plagg snapped.  “One thing at a time!  First question:  Do you want to tell her you know her true identity?”

“Uh…”  Adrien was flapping his hands in indecision, trying to get his brain to slow down.  Did he want to tell her?  Tell her he had accidentally seen her detransform?  Or let her keep believing her secret was safe?

He immediately balked at the idea of leaving her in the dark; not telling each any personal information to keep their true identities secret was one thing, but now that he knew who she was, not telling her that he knew just seemed irresponsible, somehow.  Besides, it was  _ her _ identity; she had the right to know.

“I...I don’t think I could  _ not _ tell her.  It would eat at me until I blurted it out, or I let something slip that exposed me.  It’s  _ her _ identity, so she has the right to know!  I feel like it’s just the right thing to do.  I sure am not looking forward to the conversation, ‘cause I don’t want to upset her with the news, but...I don’t want to keep secrets from her.”

He was finally starting to feel calmer.  He looked back up at Plagg, hoping the little kwami would help him figure this all out.

“Makes sense.”  Plagg shrugged, appearing unconcerned.  “Okay, next question--”

“That's it?!” Adrien squawked incredulously.  “You're not gonna--?!”

“Do you want to wait until you see Ladybug again to tell her?” Plagg plowed on, completely ignoring him.  “Or do you want to tell Marinette next time you see her?”

Adrien shut his mouth and thought about it.  It was hard to imagine what Marinette's reaction would be to hearing that he knew she was Ladybug...she’d be shocked, of course--he knew  _ he _ would be in that situation--and they would never see each other the same way again, though he admitted that this was probably inevitable no matter how he chose to break the news to her.  Marinette was a bit of a mystery to him overall in a way: she had a tendency to stumble over her own words whenever she spoke to him, but he couldn't figure out if it was just a tick of hers or if it had something to do with him personally.  He definitely noticed that she rarely had the same trouble when she spoke to Alya, or to Nino...or to their teachers, or to Chloe, or to Sabrina, or Rose, or Max, or Kim, or Mylene, or…

Maybe it  _ was _ just him...but why?  It happened a lot with him, but not all the time: he thought it was fair enough to consider them good friends, because if she didn’t like him, she wouldn't waste her energy being friendly to him; she certainly didn't try to pretend she liked Chloe, and she didn't leave her first impression of him a mystery, either (maybe she had been a little too quick to jump to conclusions about him, but he could imagine how it might have looked to her).  She had been nothing but pleasant with him the day he accompanied her and her great-uncle to the cooking contest, and he got to see a whole new side of her during preparation for the Ultimate Mecha Strike III tournament…

_ Wait!  The tournament!  And whenever Chloe did...! _

Suddenly, things finally started to fall into place: Marinette's confidence and bravado while she trounced Max at his favorite game; Marinette's righteous anger whenever she confronted Chloe; Marinette's calm bravery and sharp wits in the face of a supervillain with a grudge; that was the Ladybug he loved and admired, only it was never just Ladybug: it was there in Marinette the whole time.

“Hey...anyone home in there?”

And Ladybug…!  Newbie, self-proclaimed klutz Ladybug managing to fall right out of the sky, knock them both off his makeshift balance beam, tie them together, and leave them dangling on their first day as superheroes...Ladybug pulling disgusted faces whenever she was forced to spend more than two minutes in Chloe’s company...Ladybug’s ability to put the most random things together to create the perfect solution to a sticky situation...that was all Marinette, too!

Brave, smart, creative, determined, kind, selfless, and the fiercest, most loyal of friends...and she had been so close to him, all this time.  Oh, how much time had he wasted, not seeing her when she was right beside him?

“HELLO-OOO!”

Adrien yelped in surprise, jumping about a foot in the air.  If he was a cat, his fur would have been standing on end.

“Sorry, Plagg!” he said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.  He could feel his cheeks glowing pink...how long had he had been blushing for?

_ Am I gonna be, like, blushing 24/7 now?  _  he wondered.   _ Between Ladybug and Marinette...Oh man, I’m in trouble… _

_ “ _ So, was any of that spacing-out productive?” Plagg asked dryly.  “Because If it wasn't, I’m done trying to help you think.”

“Yeah...yeah, it was,” replied Adrien faintly.  He was having a little trouble staying present; his head was still full of visions of ladybug spots, sky-blue eyes, and hair as black as midnight.

“So, you gonna talk to Marinette or Ladybug?” Plagg asked again.

Adrien frowned thoughtfully, trying to recover his train of thought.

_ I can never really know when I’ll see Ladybug next, _ he thought.   _ Unless we run into each other on patrol, it depends on when Hawk Moth akumatizes someone next…   _ Not for the first time (not by a long shot), Adrien wished he and Ladybug could meet without needing to fight a supervillain, even if it was just once in awhile.   _ Why  _ did their relationship have to be business-only?    


_ Well, actually, now that I knew who she is, I guess now I technically know her outside of work, too, _ he thought.  Wait, he was supposed to be making a decision right now...what was it, again? Oh, right: which identity of hers should her talk to first?

_ Unless a supervillain pops up overnight, I’ll see Marinette sooner...at school, tomorrow...oh, god, I’m gonna see her at school tomorrow!  But, wait...if I go up to her as Adrien, I’m gonna have to explain to her that I’m Chat Noir before I can tell her I know she’s Ladybug...which, I mean...I’ll probably end up telling her anyway--if I know who she is, then I should at least offer to tell her who I am--but if there really is something about me that makes her super nervous, it’ll make the conversation even more stressful...so should I talk to Marinette...as Chat Noir?  Would that work?   _ How _ would that work…? _

“Uh...I don’t think I can afford to wait until I see Ladybug, so I should probably talk to Marinette,” Adrien said slowly.  “But if I talk to her as Adrien, telling her I know she’s Ladybug is gonna seem like it’s coming out nowhere, and it’ll just freak her out even more unless I tell her I’m Chat Noir first.   _ But _ if I somehow find a way to talk to her as Chat Noir, she at least won’t freak out about her classmate suddenly knowing her secret identity...I mean, if she wants to know who I am, too, I’m totally okay with telling her, but...am I making sense?”

“Barely, but I got it,” Plagg replied, still acting as unconcerned as if they were planning a shopping trip.  “So, you’re gonna approach her as Chat Noir...where, and when?”

“Not at school, for sure; I’d probably draw a crowd,” said Adrien with a brief grin.  “But where else would I know when and where to find her…?”

Plagg slouched in midair, as if someone was dangling him by the scruff of his neck.  He suddenly looked like Adrien had said something  _ really _ stupid. 

“What?” Adrien demanded, confused and annoyed by Plagg’s dumbfounded stare.

“Where do you think she spends most of her time after school?” Plagg asked tonelessly.

“I don’t...oh.”  It clicked, and Adrien suddenly wanted to smack himself.  “Her house...I know where she lives…”   _ Oh my god, DUH _ !  _  Ladybug is Marinette, so she lives in Marinette’s house--her  _ OWN _ house!!  Ugh, my head hurts… _

“Yes, her house,” Plagg affirmed dryly.  “So, when are you gonna drop by?”

“Well, I can’t afford to have her parents walk in on us…” Adrien mused aloud, recalling with a small smile, how...inquisitive Marinette’s parents had been when while he had been training with her for the Ultimate Mecha Strike III tournament.  “So...either during peak business hours, when they’ll be busy with customers, or after they’ve gone to sleep.  They probably get busiest around breakfast and lunch, but Marinette will probably be eating with them during those times…”  Adrien sighed.  “I guess it’s gonna have to be...tonight.”  His heart started pounding from nerves as soon as he said this.  


“All right!  We  _ finally _ have a plan,” Plagg said with a sigh of his own.  “Well, until it’s time to go, I’m gonna take a nap.  When you wake me up, you’d better have a piece of Camembert for me!”  And with that, Plagg flew over to Adrien’s desk and disappeared into the trash can (empty, as far as Adrien could remember).

“Uh...okay, then…” Adrien said, a little surprised to suddenly find the conversation finished.  “You...you do that.  And I’ll do...I’ll do the other that.  Yeah…”

He trudged over to his bed and flung himself onto it.  He reached over to pick up his cell phone where he had left it on the corner of his desk and woke it up to check the time:  5:34 PM.  In a half-hour, he’d be called down for dinner.  Since Marinette’s parents probably got up early every morning, he figured 7:30 would be his best chance at catching Marinette after her parents had (hopefully) gone to sleep but before Marinette had (hopefully!) gone to sleep herself.

He set an alarm for 7:25 PM on his phone, and then stuffed it in his pocket.  He sighed, tucking his hands behind his head, and lie there staring at the ceiling, his mind buzzing and his heart pounding.

_ Two hours from now, I’ll be seeing Ladybug...Marinette...in her room, and laying it all out into the open, _ he thought.   _ I just hope we’ll both be ready for it... _


	2. Marinette's Other Secret

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chat Noir pays a visit to Marinette to confess he's discovered her secret identity, and to offer to reveal to her his own...but then he stumbles upon Marinette's OTHER secret! Seeing pictures of himself all over her room could make this a little more complicated! How does she really feel about him as Adrien?

After eating dinner, Adrien returned to his room with the full intention of working on homework and maybe taking a shower in the hour of spare time he had until 7:25.  He ended up staring at the books and paper on his desk for 5 minutes before giving up and flinging himself back onto his bed, where he remained for next thirty minutes, mind buzzing with nerves.  When his phone went off, he was pretty sure he had a very mild heart attack.  Pressing a hand to his chest in an attempt to calm his pounding heart, he rolled over and got to his feet.

“...Plagg?” Adrien called hesitantly.  “It’s...it’s time to go.”

“And my Camembert?” answered Plagg’s voice from Adrien’s trash can.

Adrien sighed heavily.  Feeling so nervous for so long got tiring after a while.

“Right here,” he replied tonelessly, digging out his last piece of cheese.

Plagg promptly came whizzing over and snatched the cheese out his hand, digging into it with gusto.  Adrien gave him 30 seconds before...

“Plagg, transform me!”

And with that, he climbed out through one of his many bedroom windows, and took off into the fading light.

Somehow, in the 5-minute run to Tom and Sabine’s Patisserie, he was able to outrun a lot of his anxiety.  In the rush of running, leaping, and propelling himself across the rooftops, he was able to blow off a lot of steam he hadn’t realized he had been holding in.  He was still nervous, to be sure, but it was a nervous excitement; he held on tight to the hope that, once the shock had been gotten over with, he and Ladybug ( _ Marinette, _ he reminded himself.   _ Marinette, my partner. _ ) could take this accidental revelation and turn it into an opportunity to grow closer...as classmates, as partners, as friends...they had come through far too much together to be torn apart over an accident like this.

_ Nothing could keep me from being there for her, _ he silently promised.   _ I’ll always have your back, my lady, no matter what! _

Taking a deep, steadying breath, he leapt down and sprinted across the street before leaping into the air again, touching down atop a lamppost before springing even higher to finally land on the Dupain-Chengs’ rooftop balcony.  Panting slightly, heart pounding (not from the run over; his suit granted him superhuman levels of strength and endurance), he slowly approached the trapdoor, crouched down to sit cat-like on all fours, and eyed it hesitantly.

_ Is it weird that I’m so nervous? _ he wondered.   _ I’ve wanted to tell Ladybug who I am, and know who she is, for so long…I was so in love, I wanted to know everything about her...and I wanted  _ her _ to want to know everything about  _ me.   _ I wonder if she was ever as curious as I was...she never said much about how she felt about it, only reminded me that nobody--not even us--could know who we are. _ _ It wasn’t because she wasn’t as little to do with me as possible--THAT I’ve always known--so she must have just been trying to be safe and smart.  So, then...if it weren’t for the need for secrecy, would she not have minded telling each other everything…?  _

Somehow, this thought gave him a little extra courage.  Maybe, when they got over the initial shock, this could be an enormous burden lifted off their shoulders.

_ We’ll grow closer getting through this,  _ he promised silently.   _ You’d want the same thing, too, right, my lady? _

He finally managed a brief smile.  He gulped, and gently knocked on the hatch.

Marinette rolled back in her chair and stretched with a groan.  Her shoulders and upper back were feeling a little stiff from hunching over an essay-in-progress for over an hour.  In the last 5 minutes, she had done nothing but stare blankly at her tablet, so she figured she’d be better off taking a break and then switching subjects.

She stood up and stretched again, and decided to change into pajamas.

_ Then maybe I’ll go downstairs and grab a snack, _ she thought.

She was just slipping her arms into the sleeves of her pajama top when the sound of knocking suddenly broke the silence.  Marinette shrieked in surprise, getting her head caught in her shirt.  (Outside, Chat Noir winced sheepishly, hearing her shriek from below easily with his enhanced hearing.)  The knocking had come from the trapdoor to the balcony above, not the one leading downstairs from her room.

“Omigod, what was that?!” she squeaked.  “Another supervillain?!  But why here?!  And why knock?!”

“I don’t know!” whispered Tikki from next to Marinette’s vanity.  “Be careful, but try to figure out who it might be; if you transform now, they might figure out your identity if they know you live here!”

Another set of knocks, identical to the first.  The knocks didn’t sound impatient, or aggressive; it was very similar to the knocks she might hear on her other trapdoor before her parents popped their heads in ( _ when _ they knocked, anyway).  But nobody should have been on the roof this late, and she knew her parents hadn’t gone up there.

She struggled with her shirt until she managed to free her head and pull it down properly.  The trapdoor was locked, but if it was a supervillain, it wouldn’t slow them down much.  She slowly backed her way towards the trapdoor leading downstairs, in case she needed to run for it, and tried to think of her options.

_ Knock knock knock knock knock _ .  A third set of knocks.  Then, a hesitant voice calling through the door, too soft and muffled to make out.

“Who is it?” Marinette called back.  She was proud of herself for not sounding scared.

A pause.  Then…

“...Marinette?”

Marinette’s stomach lurched and her heart stuttered at the familiar voice.  Chat Noir gave himself a mental slap on both cheeks; his voice had come out softer and a lot less confident than he had wanted it to.

Marinette’s brain was swirling in panic and confusion.

_...Adrien?! _ _ There’s no way…!  ADRIEN?!  WHY THE HECK IS HE ON MY BALCONY?!  HOW DID HE GET UP THERE?!  WHAT THE HECK IS HAPPENING?! _

“Marinette?  It’s...it’s Chat Noir.  Um, can I come in?”

Marinette’s brewing panic attack screeched to a halt.  

_...wait, what?  Oh...yeah, I guess that  _ is _ Chat Noir’s voice...but he sounds...off. _

“Uh, yeah, just a minute!” she called. 

She climbed up the stairs to her bed and reached up to unlock the latch.  Still not knowing what to think about the situation, she nevertheless pushed the door open and stood up to peek outside.

There he was, sitting cat-like by the hatch and smiling in greeting at her in a curiously tight, fixed manner, like he was nervous about something.

“Uh, hey, Chat Noir!  What’s up?” Marinette greeted cheerfully, trying to seem excited to see him.  As far as he knew, she was but an ordinary girl who had merely gotten caught up in a few sticky situations involving supervillains...and on at least one of those occasions, she was pretty sure he had convinced himself that he had greatly impressed her with his superhero skills-with-a-z.

“Hey!” he answered with an awkward wave.  “Uh, I was wondering if you and I could...have a little chat?”  He cocked his head to one size, seemingly in an attempt to look charmingly more cat-like.  “I need to tell you something important.  May I come in?”

“Oh!  Sure, absolutely!” she chirped back.  “Come on in!  I’ll get out of your way here…”  She ducked down and descended the stairs, wracking her brains to think of why he might have come here.

_ He hasn’t interacted with me as Marinette in a while, and I haven’t been caught in a tight spot as Marinette in a while, either.  What could he possibly have to talk to me about? _

She sat herself in her computer chair as Chat Noir dropped down onto her bed and descended the stairs after her.  She realized a split-second later her mistake, and stood up again.

“Wait!  Don’t--!”

It was a split-second too late:  Chat Noir had already come down and turned around.

“What?” he started to ask.  “What’s the--?”

He trailed off.  Something on the wall to his left had caught his eye, and now his eyes were slowly roaming around the wall as if he was in a trance, taking in the sight of many,  _ many _ photos of a very,  _ very _ familiar model,  _ all _ over the wall.

_ That is...definitely me.  Those are very definitely photos of me, Adrien Agreste...on Marinette’s wall...I am all over Marinette’s bedroom wall… _

Marinette was frozen, her eyes bugging out and her jaw gaping open in horror.

_ Oh god, he’s seen them… _ she thought.   _ Someone please kill me… _

There was a moment of absolute silence as both Chat Noir  _ and  _ Marinette tried to get their brains back online.

_ Marinette has photos of me ALL OVER HER WALL...Why does Marinette have photos of me all over her wall?  What am I supposed to do with this information?  I don’t know what to think AT ALL! _ _ What does it MEAN?! _

Chat Noir recovered first; somehow, he was able to force a coherent sentence out of his mouth, and sound somewhat calm and collected:

“So...you’re a...fan?”

Marinette blinked, and then finally seemed to come unstuck.  Her eyes followed his gaze and darted around, taking in all the pictures of Adrien that still had Chat Noir somewhat spellbound, and then came back to rest on Chat Noir again.  When she failed to respond right away, he finally tore his gaze away from the wall to look back at her.

“Uh...no?  I mean, yes?  I mean, no!” she babbled, waving her hands in front of her in panic.  “No no no no no!  It’s not what it looks like!”

Somehow,  _ miraculously _ , Chat Noir managed to raise one eyebrow and smirk dubiously at her.

“ _ Reeeaaallly?” _ he drawled.  He relaxed his posture and stood with his hands on his hips.  “And, what do you think it looks like, little princess?”

“Um…!”  With her eyes still bugging out, Marinette was clearly wracking her brains for a response, and...was she blushing?  “Like...like an obsession?  With Adrien Agreste?  Because that’s totally not what it is!  I’m not obsessed!  I just...I’m really into fashion?  And I want to become a fashion designer?  And Gabriel Agreste is kind of my idol?  Because he’s, like, the greatest fashion designer in the world?  And Adrien Agreste is his son?  And he models for his label?  So I...just use the pictures for inspiration?!”

“I mean,” Chat Noir began, glancing pointedly around at  _ all _ of the pictures of himself.  “Looking at all of these, you’d think Adrien Agreste was the only model for the whole company, but I’m  _ preeeeeetty _ sure having only  _ one _ model advertise the entire label by modeling  _ only _ young men’s fashion wouldn’t be a very good business model.  What about women’s fashion?  All those beautiful dresses for red carpet events and high-class social gatherings?  They’d be ignoring their biggest demographic!  And  _ you’d _ be missing out on all of that inspiration!”

Marinette’s sheepish grin seemed frozen on her face, and, if possible, her eyes seemed to get even bigger.  And yes, she was definitely blushing.

_ Oh my god, this is so bad…! _  Marinette thought.   _ I do NOT want Chat Noir of all people learning about my secret crush on Adrien!  I don’t think he’d be able to resist teasing me...he wouldn’t be trying to be mean about it, but it’s none of his business and it’s EMBARRASSING!! _

“Well…!” she floundered.  “He’s...he’s also my class and he’s in my friend?  I mean he’s my  _ friend  _ and he’s in my  _ class _ !”   _ Where was I even gonna go with this?! _  “So…! So…!”

“Sooo…?” Chat Noir echoed, leaning forward in interest.

_ I have no idea what to think! _ he thought.   _ I mean, if this was anyone else, I’d just assume it was a celebrity crush, but if that’s what it was, Marinette would have been fawning all over me like so many other girls did when I first started school.  But it never seemed to be a big deal to her… _

_ But then…why  _ does _ she act so weird around me? _ he wondered, baffled. _  I really wanna know… _     


He hadn’t forgotten why he had come here in the first place, but he just couldn’t bring himself to let this go until after they talked about their secret identities. He needed to know everything! 

“Aww, come on, Marinette!” he began, grinning.  “There’s no shame in crushing on handsome young celebrities!  It’s part of being a teenager!”

“You’re a teenager, too!” Marinette retorted, gesturing toward him incredulously with both hands.  “And, not to further inflate your ego, but you’re a celebrity, too, and you’ll notice I don’t have pictures of  _ you _ all over my room!”

_ Ah, but you  _ do! __ Chat Noir just snickered at this; the irony was just priceless.

“Stop laughing!” Marinette growled, stomping her foot.  She crossed her arms and scowled at him.  “Why do you care who I like, anyway?  It has nothing to do with you...unless…”  Her entire posture suddenly relaxed, and she suddenly stared at him like she had never seen him or even heard of him before.  “You’re...jealous?  No, don’t tell me…!”  She stood up straighter and crossed her arms against, now smirking smugly at him with one eyebrow raised (It was so distinctly, unmistakably  _ Ladybug _ that it made his stomach do a giddy backflip).  Still obviously teasing him, she held one hand to her chest dramatically.  “Aww, Chat Noir, I’m sorry, but my heart already belongs to someone else...”

“So I’ve noticed!” Chat Noir said, looking pointedly up at the pictures again.  He held his chin in his hand thoughtfully, giving his own face an evaluating look-over.  “I don’t blame you, he looks like quite the dreamboat!”     


Marinette’s expression changed from smug to grouchy again faster than a traffic light.  Screwing her eyes shut, she took a deep breath, and then resumed scowling at him.  She looked about ready to launch into a lecture.

“Okay, now look!”  Marinette began. “Yes, he’s famous!  Yes, he’s handsome!  But that is  _ not _ why I like him!

“He’s super-smart, and super-talented: he fences, he plays basketball, he plays piano, he speaks Chinese,  _ and  _ gets really good grades in school  _ in addition _ to modeling!  And even though Adrien comes from a rich family and he’s in every fashion magazine in Paris, he’s always so modest and polite; he never rubs in anyone’s faces, and he’s so, so nice to everyone!    He gets along with everyone in my class, and he’s always thinking of other people, and…uh...”    


Marinette’s rave trailed off as her brow relaxed and her eyes gradually fell to stare at the floor. 

Her shoulders hunched inward shyly and she started fidgeting, shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot and tapping her index fingers together under her chin.  Chat Noir stared at her in stunned silence, his mouth slightly open.  He didn’t think he had ever seen her blush so much...not as Ladybug, certainly, and he couldn’t remember noticing Marinette blush like that before, either…

But maybe she  _ had _ been.  Maybe she had been blushing all the time, like the way  _ he  _ did whenever he met Ladybug’s gaze without a mask to disguise his face.  Maybe he just hadn’t noticed...or hadn’t understood what it all meant:  all of her blushing, her stammering, and her fidgeting and flailing…

Marinette continued, now speaking softly as if to herself:

“...I thought he would be just like this other girl in my class--she’s the daughter of the mayor and she’s spoiled and selfish and an absolute pest--just because he was rich and famous…I thought he was putting gum on my seat when he was actually just trying to take it off.  It turned out he had never been to school before, and didn’t know how to make friends, but even though he didn’t even know if I believed him, he gave me his umbrella because it was raining…”    


She smiled wistfully.    


“There was something about how kind and sincere he was to me that just…”  She trailed off and shook her head as if coming out of a daze.  She sighed, and then looked up at him, her eyes bright with conviction.  “We’ve been friends since then--at least, I like to think so--but whenever I try to ask him out, my mind goes blank, and I start stuttering like crazy, and end up making a fool of myself.  And he’s still always nice to me, even though I can’t seem to put together a complete sentence around him...so, yeah, I’ll admit I’m...that I…”  She heaved a deep sigh.  “That I’m in love with him.  But it’s  _ not _ a celebrity crush.  I just can’t help but admire how amazing he looks in pictures anyway.”

“Huh…”  Chat Noir murmured, still staring at her, as if he was seeing her for the first time.  He felt slightly dizzy, barely able to comprehend what he was hearing.

_ All this time, Marinette...liked  _ me? __ Adrien  _ me? _ _ And I’ve been in love with Ladybug, all this time...but Ladybug is Marinette, so then… _

_...we’ve both been in love, chasing after each other this whole time…? _

He keep staring at Marinette, his eyes roving over her face, and drowning in her blue eyes.  She looked back at him, now clearly baffled at the intensity of his gaze.

_ Why is he looking at me like that? _ Marinette thought.  She was mystified by his expression, which she had never seen on his face before.  He looked as if he were hypnotized...hypnotized by her.  And it almost seemed to draw her in...what was he thinking?  She wanted-- _ needed _ \--to know…

Then, slowly...a smile bloomed on Chat Noir’s face.  It was like watching the sun rise behind his mask.  His eyes never left her...and she couldn’t look away, either.

Chat Noir didn’t have words to even describe to himself what he was feeling...it just felt like his heart was inflating and floating upward like a hot air balloon.  And then, his eyes flickered down and caught sight of her lips:  glossy, pink, and soft and plush-looking like a fresh flower petal.  And when, just for a second, he wished he could kiss those lips...it hit him, all at once, and it felt like Ladybug’s hands had reached inside and squeezed his heart between them.

_ I love this girl... _ he thought.   _ I’ve loved her since the day we met...but back then, I only knew her as my crazy-amazing partner, Ladybug.  We made such a great team from the get-go, I never doubted that were made for each other!  And now, I know that she’s also one of first, and closest, friends...instead of knowing two separate girls, each from different sides of my life, I actually know one girl twice as well as I thought I did, across both identities...and I think...I think I love her all the more for it.  Who else could possibly be the more perfect girl for Ladybug to be, besides Marinette?  I wouldn’t have it any other way.    
_

A gentle chuckle escaped him, and it just grew from there: soon, he laughing like he hadn’t laughed in long time.  His cheeks felt sore, and there was a lump of unshed happy tears in his throat.

Marinette was completely lost.

“ _ Why are you laughing?! _ ”  she demanded, scowling again.  “Is my secret crush  _ funny _ to you somehow?  Humph!  As if  _ you’re _ some kind of love-guru…”  She backed up and seated herself in her computer chair, crossed her arms, and pouted at him.  Unfortunately for her, she was still glowing bright red with embarrassment, and she couldn’t seem hold eye contact with Chat Noir for more than 2 seconds at a time.

 

“This is damaging to my self-esteem…” she growled.  “I hope you know.”

Chat Noir struggled to catch his breath, but he felt positively giddy with joy.

“I--I’m--!  Ha ha!  Ha ha ha ha ha!  I’m sorry, Ma--ha-ha-ha-ha-ha--!  Sorry, Marinette!  I’m not--!”  He giggled, wheezing slightly now.  He held up a hand.  “I’m not laughing at you!” he gasped, hugging himself around the middle with his other arm.  “I’m just…”  His laughter was finally wearing off, sounding more like panting after running a marathon.  He blinked away the happy tears budding at the corners of his eyes and looked at her apologetically.  “I’m just really, really happy…”

Marinette’s face relaxed and she blinked at him in confusion.

“You’re...happy?  Why?” she asked.  “And...wait, why did come see me in the first place?  What did you want to talk to me about in the first place?”

He took a few more deep, regulating breaths, and finally stood up straight again.

“Well...it’s gonna be a long story, and…” he glanced at the round window over her desk.  “I probably won’t even be able to cover everything if I’m gonna let you get your sleep.  And…”  He took another deep breath.  “Everything’s gonna change for both of us from here on out, but I’m hoping it’ll be for the better, once we get used to it all.”

“Wha...what do you mean?” Marinette asked softly.  She suddenly became aware of her heart pounding nervously.

_ I have no idea what to expect... _ she thought.   _ What could he possibly mean by, “Everything’s gonna change for both of us”?  He’s still smiling, so it can’t really be  _ bad _ news, at least, right? _

“All I can do is just explain,” he answered, shrugging.  “Are you...you okay to hear me out?”

“Uh...yeah…” she answered.  “I think so...” 

“Okay…”   _ Here goes… _ he thought.

“So…” he began slowly, carefully trying to formulate his story in his head.  “You, uh...remember Windfall, the supervillain that made money rain all over campus earlier today?  And there were a  _ ton _ of police and emergency crew everywhere because so many people tried to collect the money instead of evacuate?  And the press sent in, like,  _ four _ helicopters?”

“Uh…yeah, yeah, of course!” she said, grinning nervously.  “That was my school, and I, uh, was in class at the time, so I had to evacuate with everyone!  It was...really noisy and chaotic and...just crazy!  I-it was a good thing you and Ladybug got there so quickly before things could get even crazier!”

Now that he knew she was fabricating part of her story on the spot the way he had to do so many times, it seemed so obvious.  He sincerely hoped he sounded more convincing than she did when he had to come up with an excuse for his absence.

“Right…” he said slowly.  “Well, when it was all over and... _ Ladybug _ and I left the scene, I had to turn around to avoid letting the helicopters see me.  I was worried they would try to follow me for extra footage, and then they might see me detransform.  So I lost them, but…”  He pressed his lips together anxiously.  “I  _ accidently _ ended up following you and, long-story-short, I  _ accidentally _ saw you detransform and walk out right in front of the car  _ I _ was hiding behind,” he forced out through his nervously-clenched teeth.

Marinette’s face had gone completely blank, with her eyes bugging out and practically threatening to pop out of her head.  She could have been an extremely well-made and dressed mannequin.

“...so, I guess I know you a lot more now, my lady,” he said, grinning nervously.  He hoped he had succeeded in not sounding worried or upset.  He  _ really _ didn’t want her to panic.

Good news was, she wasn’t...not yet, anyway.  Bad news?  It looked like he had broken her.

“Uh...you still with me, Marinette?” he asked brightly, leaning forward to stare at her.  “Ladybug?”

Movement!  Her right eye twitched.

_...he saw me… _  Marinette felt like her brain had been downgraded to a dial-up connection to her ears.   _...he saw me detransform...he saw me...he knows...he saw me...he knows… _

“...Laaaaaaadybuuuuuuug…” he called quietly in a sing-song voice.  “Yoo-hoo!  Buginette?  Bugiboo?  My lovely little love-bug?”

Marinette finally snapped out of her daze and gave herself a shake.

“Ugh, okay!  Okay…”  She took a deep breath, looking just a little unhinged.  “So...now you know...um...what happens now?”  She managed to refocus her eyes and look him in the face again.  She was gently worrying on her bottom lip, which distracted him for a brief moment...it drew his attention to her lips, so adorably pink and soft-looking...but he knew nibbling your own lips lead to chapped lips (which, as a model, he couldn’t afford to get, of course), so he slowly...very slowly...reached out and very softly stroked his clawed thumb over her lip, causing her to reflexively part and relax her mouth.  She stared at him with wide, shining eyes, surprised and in awe of his unexpected tenderness.

“Well, you deserved to know as soon as possible, and I didn’t know when I would see you next as Ladybug,” he explained, his voice low and barely more than a whisper (the sight of her gazing at him with such intensity was so mesmerizing).  “But…”  He forced himself to stand up straight to give her more space.  “I also figured it was only fair to...tell you who I am, too, if you want to know…”  He put his hands behind his back in an attempt to look as modest and harmless as possible.

“You...you would tell me who you are?  But…”  She appeared to consider her next words, glancing at the floor.

_ This feels so surreal...is this really happening?   _ She thought.   _ I understand everything he’s said so far, but at the same time, I feel like I barely understand what’s going on...Should I be freaking out more?  Is is all this...really okay…? _

“Are you...really okay with...with me being  _ me _ ?” she finally asked.  “I mean…”  She grimaced at Chat Noir nervously.  “I know I don’t...act the same way when I’m Ladybug as I do when I’m just Marinette…”

“I think it would be weirder if you  _ were _ !” Chat Noir said brightly, shaking his head with a grin.  “Ladybug has to fight supervillains and rescue civilians, and Marinette has to worry about school and friends and family; they’re two totally different sides of your life!  I’m the same way, you know,” he admitted, scratching the back of his head a little shyly.  “I  _ can’t _ act the way I do as Chat Noir in my normal life...I have too many responsibilities...too many people with too many expectations for me that I have to live up to…”  Though he was still smiling at her, Marinette thought she could hear a hint of sadness in his voice with this last admission.

_ It sounds like his normal life is...really demanding, even stifling and stressful...I don’t think I could have guessed that, from how carefree and...playful he is,”  _ she mused.   _ I guess, if I’m being honest with myself...it makes me curious.  If it only makes sense now to share our secret identities with each other, I think I’d actually...really like to get to know Chat Noir better.  Even if he gets on my nerves sometimes, I’m so glad to have him as my partner.  He’s actually...a pretty great guy under all those bad puns… _

She smiled at him, feeling a little bashful, and nervous, but hopeful.

“I’m...glad being my partner makes you happy,” she said softly.  “I know  _ I’m _ happy to have you around.”

Chat Noir wasn’t prepared for that; his eyes widened, and his mouth gaped ever-so-slightly.  He was truly touched, and it didn’t even occur to him to keep it from showing on his face.  He beamed at her, his eyes shining gratefully.  He stepped forward, and got down on his knees in front of her.

“Thank you…” he murmured.  “You don’t know how much it means to me to hear you say that, my lady.” 

From her perch on her computer chair, she looked down at him in surprise.  His gaze was so tender, filled with so much raw adoration that it almost took her breath away.  She smiled at him and leaned forward.

“I should have said it more often,” she said.  “I...didn’t want to fuel your ego, because it seemed so big already, but now I know how wrong I was to think that...you deserve to know how much I appreciate you.”

_ If she keeps saying things like this, I’m gonna cry! _ he thought.  He was seized with the urge to gather her up in his arms and kiss her until the sun came up again, but he resisted by the skin of his teeth.  It was only right to let her know who he was, and how he felt about her, before requesting a kiss from her.

“In that case,” he said.  “ _ You  _ deserve to know that meeting you, and becoming Chat Noir to fight by your side changed my life in a way  _ nothing _ else ever could.  This past year and some months since we first fought Stoneheart together...it’s been the happiest time of my life.”

“Oh, Kitty…”  Marinette came down from her chair to sit on her knees on the floor with him, and him into a hug.  Chat Noir instinctively wrapped his arms around her and laid his head gently on top of hers.  He felt like there was a big knot made up of his emotions squeezing his heart and tugging it up his throat.  It felt  _ wrong _ to try to push it back down, to try to keep it from escaping him, after keeping it barely concealed inside himself for so long...

“Will you tell me?” Marinette whispered.  “I want to know…”

His breath hitched, and there was the tell-tale sound of a sniffle from his nose.  It was too much... _ she _ was too much.  She was welcoming him literally with open arms, drawing him in where he would be helpless, and never want to leave…He almost forgot what she had just said in the rush of emotion finally bursting out of him.

“I love you…” he whimpered into her hair.  “From the day I met you…!  You have no idea…!  I just...didn’t know how to…!”

He heard Marinette gasp softly, then felt her squeeze him tighter.

“...even now?” she whispered.    


“More than ever…” he croaked.  “You have always been amazing, my lady; both with and without the mask.  I was just too blind to see for the longest time that you were one person...not two.”

They sat there on their knees, holding each other for a moment.  When Marinette relaxed her hold slightly, he let them both pull back so they could look at each other again.  He could feel partially-fallen tear tracks drying on his cheeks, but he wasn’t ashamed in the slightest.  Marinette was looking back at him with tender eyes and a tender smile, but also in wonder…

“Do I know  _ you _ in real life, too?” she asked, looking deep into his eyes.

He nodded eagerly, rubbing one of his eyes with the heel of his right hand and giving a big long sniff in an attempt to clear his nose.

“Oh, geez...” she muttered, looking down at her knees.  “That makes me a lot more nervous!  But…”  She looked back up at him.  “But I guess, in a way it means that much more to know who you were all this time.  I just…”  He saw her glance at her pictures of him, and he was pretty sure he could guess what her worry was.  “I...I would hate to make things...awkward between us because of…uh...”

“Hey…”  He reached out to gently press his left palm against her right cheek and turn her face back to face him.  He cradled her face in both of his hands, and his heart sang when she relaxed her neck.  “You don’t have to worry.  If you can learn to love  _ this  _ side of me as much as you love the awkward boy who gave you his umbrella, then I’ll be the happiest, luckiest cat in Paris.”

“What do you--”  She cut herself off and stared at him in disbelief.   _ No way...I heard that wrong somehow...there’s no way…! _

Chat Noir took a deep, steadying breath.

“Plagg...detransform me.”

Marinette squinted in the brief crackle of green sparks and black particles that enveloped him as his suit disappeared and Plagg came flying out of his ring. Marinette’s eyes popped open like a frog being squeezed too hard, and she gawked at him like he had sprouted fur and whiskers.

“Hi…” he whispered gently, still holding her face in his now-bare hands. “Um...sorry I’ve been such an oblivious idiot.  I always thought I’d recognize you anywhere, but it looks like love made us both blind!”

Marinette slowly reached up to press a hand to one of his, her eyes never leaving his, as if to check to see if he was real.

“...Adrien…?” she whispered.   _ Is this really happening?    
_

He beamed at her and nodded again.  (His cheeks were sore from smiling at her.)    


“...and yours,” he whispered back.  “If you’ll have me, my lady...”

He paused, and then, slowly, and gently, he drew her face forward ever so subtly...and he leaned forward until he was able to touch his forehead to hers.  He heard her soft, shaky intake of breath (and if at any point she had stopped blushing since he last noticed, she was definitely blushing again, now), but she didn’t move, except to press her hand more firmly against his.  Her eyes widened ever-so-slightly, and her eyelids fluttered slightly.

_ I...I  _ want  _ this to be real…I’ve never seen Adrien look at me like this...like I’m the moon and stars.  But, he’s Chat Noir...which means he’s  _ always _ looked at me like this...just not while I was looking.  I just didn’t catch him at it...just like he never caught me gazing at him longingly because  _ he _ wasn’t looking at the right time...  _

_ Maybe this should be a lot more nerve-wracking and awkward...but I just feel really…floaty (Is “floaty” a word?).  And… _

Her eyes, which had been slowly exploring and admiring his face, came to rest on his lips, still smiling blindingly at her.   _     
_

_ I feel like I’m gonna faint thinking about it, but...I really, really wanna kiss him... _

Adrien instinctively zeroed-in on the split-second flicker of her gaze to the lower-half of his face. __ The sight made his heart jump, and it felt like the sign he had been yearning to see since the day he fell for her.

“...Marinette?” he murmured.

Jerking out of her daze, Marinette blinked rapidly at him, but by some miracle didn’t freak out and burst the happy bubble they were in.

“...Hm?”  It was the only sound she could managed, but it was enough.

Adrien swallowed nervously.

“May I...may I kiss you?”

_ Oh, god, yes, please…!  Dream or no dream, I  _ have _ to kiss you…! _

Her chin trembled, but she held his gaze and nodded.  Adrien’s heart stuttered in giddy anticipation and threatened to jump into his throat as he guided her face towards him, tilting his head to meet her.    


Their lips met gently, and a little uncertainly, but Adrien died a dozen blissful little deaths inside from how  _ soft _ her lips felt against his.  For the record, even if it had been the most awkward first kiss ever performed, Adrien would still have found it  _ magical _ , because this was the girl he was  _ hopelessly  _ in love with, and he was  _ kissing her at last! _     


They pulled away gently after only a second or two--it apparently took practice to make a kiss last longer (despite what romance movies would have him believe)--but it was a second or two of delightful little shivers shooting up their spines and fluttering heartbeats.  Then, just as Adrien was about to open his eyes, Marinette cupped his face in her hands and  _ pulled his face closer, _ and started  _ kissing him again _ !  There was no hesitation this time, only sheer joy and loving warmth in the passionate way she was firmly pressing her lips to his.  Adrien sighed audibly and instantly responded to her with equal fervor, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her closer.   Marinette made a tiny little hum of happiness against his lips, and he almost  _ fainted _ from the sheer wonder of the moment.  

When they finally parted (anywhere from 3-6 seconds later; Adrien couldn’t have kept track with his brain overheating and running at 30% efficiency), he heard them both gasp very softly for breath, and his lips tingled from the little puff of air from between Marinette’s barely-parted lips.  Still holding her in his arms, he felt it when a shiver went up her spine.  He leaned back  _ just _ enough to be able to see her face again, and another little  _ whoosh _ of air escaped him at the sight of her cheeks glowing pink and her eyes half-lidded and shining as she stared back up at him.  She looked exactly like he felt:  like she had just found the secret to everlasting happiness, and almost couldn’t believe she wasn’t dreaming.  


	3. Excitement for Tomorrow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dating Adrien Agreste will undoubtedly come with complications, but there's no way Adrien and Marinette and will let that get in the way of their new-found love! Also, kitties are so kissable and hard to leave when they want your attention...

Marinette would have assumed that, upon kissing her crush, Adrien Agreste, a.k.a., her partner, Chat Noir, and finding herself wrapped in his warm embrace, she would have fainted from the shock to her heart....but then again, if anything, the kiss alone should have done her in.  Now that she was here, however, she was content to stay here, all night long...doing what, exactly, she couldn’t have told you, but it would most definitely have involved her aforementioned partner/crush.  She was just starting to consider her options... 

Was she brave enough to lead him to her lounger, where they would be more  _ comfortable? _  Or up to her  _ bed, even?! _  Where they could  _ snuggle _ ...just snuggle!  Well, and kiss some more, maybe…

...Until she tried and and failed to stifle a yawn.

_ Darn it! _ _ No!  You CANNOT get sleepy now!   _

Adrien was smacked in the face with the realization the passage of time did  _ not _ , in fact, suspend itself for romantic moments.

“Oh no, I completely forgot how late it was!” he exclaimed, grimacing apologetically.  “What time even  _ is it? _ ”  His head whipped left and right and all around the room cluelessly, wondering if there was a clock in her room.

“I dunno…” Marinette murmured vaguely, glancing briefly at her computer monitor with no real interest in it; the screen was black, obviously in sleep mode.   _ Who cares? _ She thought.   _ Why would I want to go to sleep when I could keep kissing the love of my life? _

“Well, as much as I don’t want to, I should leave and let you get to bed.”  He smiled awkwardly.  “We both have school in the morning, and...well, yeah.”

“Oh god, school!” Marinette exclaimed, her eyes suddenly bugging out.  “What are we going to do about school?  I mean,” she continued in response to Adrien’s questioning look.  “We’re...um,” she pressed her lips together and looked nervously bashful.  “We’re...now that we clearly feel...the same way about each other, then...technically, we’re... _ together? _ ” she hedged, looking at him out of the corner of one eye.  “So, then...we’re the only ones who know our secret identities, but no one else is going to know we’re a  _ thing _ at all...unless we  _ tell _ people we’re dating…?  I assume we’re dating now, r i g h t…?”

“Um,  _ yes! _ ” Adrien replied emphatically, nodding rapidly at her.  “ _ Totally, completely, and absolutely! _  But…” he furrowed his brow thoughtfully, reminding himself that he had his father’s company’s image to keep in mind.  “I actually might have to talk to my father’s assistent about my updated relationship status before we risk letting it go public.”  He grimaced apologetically.  “ _ I _ would have no problem declaring it to the whole  _ world _ , but, unfortunately, it could be a PR issue if we don’t have a plan for it.”

“Yeah, you’re right…” Marinette agreed, frowning thoughtfully.  “I would definitely rather keep dealing with the press as Ladybug and Chat Noir, and not get stalked by the paparazzi just because we’re dating.  Oh, god!” she blurted suddenly, “ _ Am I going to be attacked by fangirls?!” _

Adrien winced.  Dealing with overexcited fans was never fun for him, but most of time, they could be satisfied with an autograph (as much as he hated signing autographs), and he then could go on his merry way.  In addition, he was usually accompanied by his bodyguard, who was intimidating enough to ward off anybody who might otherwise get all up in his face.  Marinette, one other hand, was a whole other story: people who might swarm her out of interest in her relationship with him wouldn’t be seeking autographs; they would either bombard her with questions (many times more aggravating than just squealing about how handsome he was) or (much worse) blow their jealousy and resentment at her.  Worst case scenario, she could be  _ attacked _ by some truly crazy “fans” of his!  

“We’ll probably be dating in secret for a while, until we have a plan for the whole thing,” he said.  “But my bodyguard is almost always with me when I’m not at home or at school, and nothing’s ever gone out-of-control with him around.  We will  _ definitely _ make it work out, I promise.”  He brought a hand up to her face to brush her bangs across her forehead affectionately.  “We’re already an inseparable team!  There’s nothing that could take me away from you.”

Marinette beamed at him and shyly wrapped her arms around his neck.  Adrien resisted the urge to scoop her up and start kissing her again by the skin of his teeth.

“I know,” she said.  “If there’s anything I’ve always believed in, it’s your loyalty.  We’ve always had each other's’ backs, and we’ll take down  _ any  _ crazy fangirls dumb enough to think they can steal you from me, or drive me off!”  She inclined her head and raised her eyebrows coyly, her gaze piercing straight through him.  “If I’m  _ your _ lady, then you’re  _ my  _ kitty...so nobody else can have you...right?”

Adrien just about hiccupped around his own heart, which felt like it had slammed itself against his ribcage. He wasn’t sure how long it had been since he  _ hadn’t  _ been blushing, but now, he was pretty sure he was  _ glowing bubblegum pink _ .  He nodded dumbly, inwardly  _ swooning _ .

_ Oh, hell, yes...I am all yours, my lady… _ he gushed.   _ Your k i t t y…! _

Marinette giggled at the look on his face, and Adrien grinned giddily.    


Marinette thought,  _ How did I miss what an adorable dork this boy is?  Actually, I probably always knew--Chat Noir was  _ always _ a character _ \-- _ I just never acknowledged how lovable he was because I had my heart set on Adrien.  Which, of course, meant I was ignoring him half the time. _

“So...now that we’ve established that we’re...a... _ couple _ …?” Marinette hedged shyly.

Adrien pressed his lips together in a poorly-concealed giddy smile and only slightly muffled a squeaky giggle.  Marinette grinned at him.

“...we’ll just have to avoid public displays of affection as long as we’re keeping our relationship a secret.  But since that’s gonna make going out on traditional dates kinda difficult…”  She bit her lip and hesitated, blushing self-consciously.  “...we might have to...arrange some secret visits.  So we can spend some more time together…?”

_ Is she suggesting what I think she is? _ Adrien wondered excitedly.    


“So...correct me if I’m wrong, my lady,” he said.  “But, are you suggesting we schedule  _ secret nighttime rendezvouses?! _ ”

Marinette blushed harder and squeaked.

“If...that’s what you wanna call them, yeah…” she murmured, looking up at him.

Adrien fought the sudden urge to do a fist pump.

“Mm-kay!” he squeaked.  “Cool! Yeah, I’m--I’m down with that!  Cool!”

Marinette snorted with amusement.  She opened her mouth to reply, but yawned again.

“Oh my god, why am I still here?” Adrien said, shaking his head at himself.  “I don’t know how much sleep we’re going to get at this rate, but I should still go and let you get to bed.”  He meant to stand up as he said this, but his legs didn’t respond. He just kept smiling at her, not wanting to leave at all.

“I guess so…” Marinette mused.  She stared back at him, and finally said, “Just so you know...the only reason I’m not kissing you again is because I’d just end up keeping us both awake for another hour, probably.”

“Same,” Adrien replied.  “So, I guess I should just get going before we give into temptation?”

“Yeah, that would be a good idea.”  Marinette took a breath and then stood up, pulling him up with her by the hands.  “Come on.”

“I might as well transform before I get outside,” he remarked.  “No need to light up your balcony in the dark!”

“Oh, yeah, good point.”

“Plagg!  Transform me!”

Marinette’s hands came up in surprise as he was engulfed in light.  When Chat Noir reappeared where Adrien Agreste had been a second earlier, Marinette reached up and ruffled his hair.

“Why does your hairstyle change when you transform?” she asked.  “Mine doesn’t.”

“Good question,” he said, chuckling.  “But I’m sure it helps keep me from being recognized.  And while wearing the suit, I think it  _ suits _ me!”  He grinned and chuckled at his own pun.  Marinette couldn’t keep her giggle in; this was 100% pure Chat Noir, right here.

“Now I’m gonna try photoshopping your two different hairstyles onto both of you!  For my own amusement, of course!” Marinette laughed.

“Now, I’ve gotta see that!” Chat Noir laughed back.    


He climbed up the steps to Marinette’s bed with Marinette right behind him.  He pushed the trap door open  as she scooted back against her pillows and tucked herself under her bedcovers.

Before climbing out, he turned to look at Marinette.

“Well, I’ll see you in the morning at school!” he said, smiling warmly.   _ Oh, god, I want to kiss her so bad… _

“Yeah!  See you,” she whispered.   _ Oh, I  _ know _ this is where we’re supposed to kiss goodnight!  But if we do, I’m gonna want to keep him here...maybe he could sleep here with me?!  No, no, get a grip Marinette; you’ll be WAY too excited to fall asleep with him so close!  Save that for another night, maybe. _

“Goodnight, Marinette...my lady,”  he reached toward her and pulled her hand to his lips.  “Sweet dreams.”

_ Never mind, scratch that, kiss me now, please. _

What she said instead was, “Good night, Adrien...my kitty.”

And with that, Chat Noir finally managed to turn and hoist himself up onto her balcony.  Once his tail has slipped out of sight and she couldn’t hear his footfalls, she stretched up and closed the trapdoor, securing the latch.

As she slid herself down under the covers and adjusted her pillow, Tikki flew out of wherever she had been hiding all this time and settled down beside her.

“Tikki!  You could have introduced yourself.”

“I will, but I didn’t want to interupt your private moment,” Tikki said simply, smiling.

“You aren’t mad that Chat Noir found out who I am, are you?” Marinette asked.

“No, I’m not mad!” Tikki replied, gesturing reassuringly with her tiny little paws.  “You didn’t do anything wrong; Chat Noir just happened to be there to catch you changing back, and there wasn’t really any way we could have known he was there if he was being just as careful as we were.”

“That’s kind of what I thought, but I’m glad you agree.  And if  _ anybody _ had to find out, Chat Noir was by far the best person to do it, right?”

“Definitely,” Tikki said with a nod.  “You two can help look out for each other now that you both know each other’s identities.  I’m not worried.”

Marinette used a finger to pet Tikki on the head.

“I’m lucky to have you looking out for me, too, Tikki,” she said.  Struck by a sudden thought, she asked, “Did you ever think that Chat Noir and I would fall in love and end up together?”

Tikki giggled.

“Actually, I suspected you would from the beginning; every kwami can sense the auras of other kwami, especially when the powers of the miraculouses are activated, so I when you fell in love with Adrien, I had a really good feeling about you two...and now I know I was right.”

“Seriously?  And you kept it all a secret so I wouldn’t know his secret identity?”  Marinette smirked teasingly at Tikki with one eyebrow raised.  “That seems like overkill!”

“It’s always better to be safe than sorry.  I’ve lived a very, very long time, so I’ve learned how important secrecy is for protecting Ladybug and Chat Noir.  But it’s true that they usually discover each other’s secret identities eventually.  It’s just safer this way.”

“I think I get it,” Marinette said  thoughtfully.  She yawned again.

“You’d better get some sleep while you can!” Tikki chirped.  “You’re going to be exhausted tomorrow as it is.”

“Yeah, I know…”  Marinette settled down into a comfortable position and pulled the covers over her shoulders.  “Goodnight, Tikki.”

“Goodnight!”

Marinette smiled as she closed her eyes, visions of Adrien and Chat Noir swimming behind her eyelids.

_ I can’t wait to see you tomorrow, kitten.  We have a lot of wasted time to catch up on! _

Settled under the covers of his own bed, Adrien stared sleepily at the ceiling, visions of Marinette and Ladybug swimming through his head.

_ I don’t know if I’ll be able to stop myself from kissing you as soon as I see you tomorrow, Bugiboo.  You are everything I’ve ever dreamed of, and now I finally have your love… _

He rolled over and closed his eyes, unable to keep the smile off his face.  It was still there as he fell asleep, dreaming of the next morning when he would hold his lady in his arms again...or tomorrow night, if she insisted he be patient.


End file.
